India Calmly Counters Trump's 25% Tariff And Criticism Over Russian Oil Imports

A day after U.S. President Donald Trump imposed a 25% "reciprocal tariff" on Indian goods and signaled additional penalties over India's continued imports of Russian oil and weapons, New Delhi has issued a composed and measured response.

Addressing the U.S.'s renewed concerns, External Affairs Ministry spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said on Friday, "In securing our energy needs, we are guided by what is on offer in the market and the prevailing global circumstance."

The response came as the U.S. escalated its pressure campaign, urging India to halt Russian energy purchases, asserting that such trade indirectly funds President Vladimir Putin's war in Ukraine. U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio, speaking to Fox News, described India's Russian oil imports as "a point of irritation" in ongoing India-U.S. trade negotiations, which are also entangled in efforts to ease the newly imposed 25% tariff.

Rubio acknowledged India's significant energy demands - with forecasts showing oil consumption could exceed 6.6 million barrels per day by 2030. He also admitted that India's motivation stems from discounted prices offered by sanction-hit Russia. "That, unfortunately, is helping to sustain the Russian war effort... So, it is most certainly a point of irritation in our relationship with India," he said.

Trump has also publicly voiced his frustration, citing that Russian crude made up 35% of India's oil supply during the first half of this year. The President questioned why India continues to rely on Moscow when "so many vendors" are available and suggested that India should instead purchase oil from the United States.

Alongside the tariff, which became effective Friday morning, Trump introduced an unspecified penalty for India's military and energy deals with Russia. "They have always bought a vast majority of their military equipment from Russia and are Russia's largest buyer of energy... at a time when everyone wants Russia to stop the killing in Ukraine," Trump said. "India will, therefore, be paying a tariff of 25 per cent, plus a penalty."

Despite the pressure, India has chosen not to retaliate against the U.S. tariff for now. Indian officials reiterated the country's long-standing relationship with Russia and its strategic autonomy. New Delhi continues to view Moscow as a "close, all-weather friend" and maintains that no country will dictate changes to its foreign or economic policy.

External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar had previously addressed similar criticism. In August 2024, he firmly stated that India's decisions are driven by the need to secure affordable energy for its people. "India is a big oil consumer... We are a big oil importer because we don't have oil... There is an oil strategy to buy oil. There is a market strategy," Jaishankar explained.

Before the Ukraine war, Russian oil played a minor role in India's energy mix due to expensive freight costs. However, by 2023, Russian exports to India surged to approximately 1.66 million barrels per day - more than double the 2022 figure - after Western sanctions forced Moscow to pivot to Asian markets.

In a move seen as an attempt to balance ties, Prime Minister Narendra Modi had committed during a February 2025 visit to Washington to increasing India's oil and gas imports from the U.S. This was also part of a broader effort to reach a $500 billion bilateral trade target within five years.

Still, India's growing energy demands mean the U.S. alone cannot meet its requirements. Presently, Iraq, Saudi Arabia, and Russia remain India's top suppliers of crude oil.